


Kill The Boy. Keep The Soldier.

by AutumnalBloom, awbucks



Category: Captain America (Comics), Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: A little, Gen, I am not good at tags, Tony Stark Has A Heart, so he and steve's relationship is a lil different, so it's kinda comics bucky
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-14
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2019-02-02 03:07:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12718401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AutumnalBloom/pseuds/AutumnalBloom, https://archiveofourown.org/users/awbucks/pseuds/awbucks
Summary: Bucky breaks into Stark Tower in order to reunite with his mentor, Steve Rogers, still very much in the dark about himself and the world.This is pretty much just a take on how a Comics!Bucky/Winter Soldier would be if he was taken and put through the MCU WS story, with the very slight aging and such.





	Kill The Boy. Keep The Soldier.

James had disabled the security system on the Captain’s floor. Was a weird technology. Almost like a person? It was probably smart enough to reboot in a little while, but it gave him time to get specs on the Captain. This is where he was supposed to be now. He’d gotten into the Shield files, and this was the address. Bucky stopped his climb through the vents when he came to a grate. If he’d memorized the map right, this one should be right above the Captain’s quarters. With relative ease, he unscrewed the grate and set the metal soundlessly on the vent. 

Boots first, James lowered himself down and landed on the rug in the center of the floor without so much as a thump. In the bed stuck to the corner, blankets tightly wrapped around his shoulders, laid the Captain. He was oddly still in the moonlight, looking both smaller than James remembered but also more...angular. Brittle. Beside the bed was his shield, looking as fresh as the day he’d gotten it painted during the war. James stepped towards the man, hand on his gun and eyes on the Captain. The only part of his face out in the open. The rest was covered by the muzzle he hadn’t taken off since he left. He stared down at the man, for a long unbreathing minute, before he sat down on the floor beside him, pointed at the door. 

James didn’t know where he belonged anymore. Didn’t know who he was anymore. But this...this felt right. Felt...like it was what he oughta do. 

Tony woke up in his lab to an alarm. Jarvis’ alarm. What the fuck? Someone had- someone had deadass ripped off one of the panels, and just grabbed a hunk of wires and pulled. Didn’t they know that shit was sensitive? A wave of anger washed over him. Nobody in their right mind would mess with Jarvis, they knew he was - he was precious to Tony. “It’s okay pal,” He said softly, beginning to type rapidly. “I’ll get you back up.” Within minutes, he had rerouted around the broken wiring and Jarvis was back up and running - now he had to go find whatever moron did this. If it was Steve and he just wanted some privacy, Tony was gonna be beyond pissed. He grabbed his suit ring and slipped it on, storming up the stairs. He was too mad to stand in the elevator and stew.

He climbed up the stairs and power walked into Steve’s room, flinging the door open. There were a lot of things he expected to find. Loki, or Steve jacking off or something. But he didn’t expect to see Bucky Barnes right there, just fucking staring at him. Kid looked empty. And like a kid. Much, much younger than Tony expected. “What the fuck.” He said aloud, maybe a little louder than he intended. Was Steve still asleep? Nevermind that. “Why did you rip out my wiring? You could have killed Jarvis. Thankfully, I have like 80 backup plans but I swear to God, don’t do that.” 

Out of more conditioning than actual thought process, James rolled up to his feet and tackled the stranger to the ground, pinning him to the ground with his metal hand and staring at him silently and expressionlessly. It was just a machine, and this was his Captain. James wasn’t going to let some technician yell at him like that. Even...even if he was loud and intense. Not as bad as his handlers, but...it still shook him. 

“мой капитан.” He said simply. “мой капитан.” Quite unfortunately, his bangs fell forward into his eyes. He growled a little and swatted at the hair. James bit his lip beneath the mask and put more force into pinning the man’s shoulder down. A strange blue light lit their chins up from his chest. James’ eyes fell to it for a moment, blinking at it. Perhaps to provide a form of healing? Or just to illuminate his path? Too dim for that. The Captain stirred behind them and James covered the man’s mouth with his hand. He didn’t want the Captain to be alerted of his presence in this situation. 

“мой капитан!” 

 

Tony put his free arm over his reactor instinctively, terror filling his face. “Steve!” He yelped, wriggling as much as he could. He couldn’t get any noise out so he did what he had to do and bit Bucky’s hand. “Steve!” He shouted again, noise finally escaping. He didn’t know what the fuck was going on but his panic was increasing with every moment this man was holding him down, looking at the reactor. Fuck, fuck, fuck stay away. “Jarvis,” He tried to get another command out but the man’s hand was back over his whole face, the hand on his shoulder growing painfully tight. Tony screwed his eyes shut, breathing starting to go into the danger zone. He was freaking the fuck out and it was too late to stop it. 

Steve finally woke up, seeing a scene unfolding that was both impossible, and right there in front of him. Bucky was pinning Tony down, and looked mad as hell. “Bucky!” He said, rushing over to him. He grabbed Bucky’s shoulder, trying to pull him off. “Get off Tony, he’s not a danger to either of us. He won’t hurt us. He’s panicking, stop.” The last word was spoken with force, the old Captain America peeking out. “Stop it, please.” He tried to pull Bucky away, giving Tony the chance to wriggle out of his grasp.

Tony didn’t waste another second before he scrambled up, breathing heavy. “K- keep your guard dog away from me, Rogers.” He spat, before he retreated to his lab to finish panicking. There was less malice and more fear in his voice than he had intended. Fuck. He ran down the stairs, sliding down the first two before he caught himself. That- that was his fault but he couldn’t- he couldn’t breathe right now and terror was the only emotion he could describe. That man would have killed him. Easily. 

As soon as the Captain said stop, James went limp and released the man. He all but allowed Steve to lift him up as...as Tony escaped. He looked up to Steve Rogers, taking in his old Captain's features. It-it was him. It was like he hadn’t aged since James had died. Still a head of blond hair and those cold eyes. They were friendly rarely but damn if he hadn’t tried to be approachable. 

James blinked and took a shuddering breath, not able to control himself in that moment. It was-it was like seeing a brother. He clinged to him and started crying uncontrollably. Compared to the Captain, he was like a child in his arms. James hadn’t seen the man-beyond the tracking missions-in decades. It was messy and would have lead to a serious infraction under Hydra, but he couldn’t control the tears that were running down his cheeks. It was just too much. Too familiar. Too real. 

Steve held him close, gently running his hands through Bucky’s hair. “Shh...hey, it’s okay. I missed you, ya moron.” He said, smiling sadly. “Let’s..let’s take that off, okay?” He added, noticing the muzzle. The lock was simple to break off, Bucky could have done it himself. Then slowly, painfully, he removed each side. “See? Better.” His eyes softened and filled with tears. “Bucky, I missed you so much. So much. Do you remember me? Steve?” Of course he did, but..not just as a concept. As a person. “You were my best friend. Always have been. I love you, Bucky, I’m so glad you’re here.” He sighed. “I’m so glad.” This wasn’t going to be an easy road, maybe Bucky would never be the same, but damn he hoped so. He wanted his old Bucky back. That wasn’t a horrible thing to want, right? He wasn’t a bad person for hoping. Everything was going to get more complicated, though. Tony looked..he had looked bad. How would Steve convince him to let Bucky stay? 

Tony barely made it down to the lab, powered by pure fear that someone would find him in..in that state. As soon as he stumbled in, he reached blindly for a blanket and once he found one, he curled up on the floor in a pile that was more blankets and tears than it was a person. He had been so close, too close. It was - Tony never let anyone come so close to his body. If someone was in his personal space, it made him feel like his chest was being wrapped in a vice, like his lungs couldn’t get enough air but if- if someone touched him? That was enough to trigger a full blown panic attack. He couldn’t handle it. 

It took hours for his breathing to slow, for the memories to fade, and for the tears to dry. That was when regret filled him. It was his own fault, he shouldn’t have yelled or - or said what he said. Steve was going to be so pissed. Just because Tony had lost his own temper, out of fear of losing..losing one of the only people he cared about. A..a computer system who’d been with him since he was 16. Sad, but true. “I’m sorry.” He said softly, to no one in particular. To everyone. God, he wanted a drink, but that wasn’t an option. Not anymore. Too many nights spent being lectured by Steve when he knew damn well that if Steve could get drunk, he’d be right there with him. Tony wasn’t the only person who wanted to fucking forget. 

James’ face was cold when Steve removed the muzzle, and his mouth was held stupidly agape for a moment or two until he came back to his senses. He stared down at the muzzle tossed onto the bed and ran a hand over his jaw. It was smoother than the rest of his face, not worn by the elements and constant battery. He nodded slowly at Steve’s question, freeing himself from the embrace. He could understand English fine, but it had been awhile since he’d spoken it. Been even longer since he said something beyond a command. 

“Y-yes.” He said softly, immediately beginning to disarm in his presence. He wished Steve hadn’t taken off the muzzle. He felt like a loose cannon without it. He hated when his mouth was vulnerable. The only reason they hadn’t cut his tongue out was that often they had to equip the asset with a rifle, thus inhibiting his capability to sign. James set one of his guns and knives down and took the muzzle back, sliding it back over his face. It seemed as though he’d made enemies here, with people he hadn’t intended to. There was apt reason to punish him. He finished disarming in front of Steve, left in the fatigues he’d escaped in, hanging limply on his frame now without the padding or weapons in their places. James looked back up at Steve as he tightened the muzzle back on. He didn’t want to loose his tongue. 

“мой капитан?” 

Steve watched him, almost frozen. It was..it was heartbreaking. Bucky would..would rather wear that thing. He took a shaky breath, standing up. “Let’s find you a place to get some rest. When was the last time you slept?” It looked like it had been some time. He was so small, too. No longer muscular or boyish, he looked closer to a skeleton. “And the last time you ate?” He placed a hand on Bucky’s shoulder, standing still a full head taller than him. “I’m not your superior, Bucky. I don’t own you. But..I’m going to try to take the best care of you that I can.” Tony- Tony wasn’t necessarily wrong. It seemed like Bucky had lost all free will. “I’ll help you as long as you need me to.” He led Bucky out into his living room, and looked around. Something plain would probably be good. “Do you want some Ritz crackers? You remember those, probably. We used to eat them a lot when we were still pretty young.” 

He got in the cabinet, and held out a single round. “I’ll get you some water too. When was the last time you had solid food? I - I know the last time we got you outta Hydra, they’d been feeding you through a saline bag.” The thought made chills run down Steve’s spine. He’d be lucky to get solid food in Bucky. Maybe..maybe he could do what he did for his grandpappy before he passed, and just blend everything up for a while. Maybe that’d work? 

James tried to answer all his questions, but came up with no answers. Since getting out of the compound...before the snow started to fall, James had trouble keeping track of such things. He slept when his body stopped and ate when it hurt too much to ignore. With his real hand, James reached out and took the cracker, loosening the muzzle enough to slide food underneath and into his mouth. He took a bite and chewed for a moment, staring up at his Captain. It fell down his throat like sand and the taste stung his tongue. Very salty. He put the rest of the cracker into his mouth and let the taste dissolve before chewing. Cautiously, maybe that’s all he is offering, James slowly outstretched his hand, palm side up. 

Steve was encouraged that he ate, and was asking for more. “Sure, pal,” He said softly, handing him a couple more. “You can have as many as you’d like.” While he went through those, Steve popped one in his mouth as well and walked over to the fridge. Bucky would probably want some water to wash it down, so he got a small glass and filled it up. “I’m gonna set this here for you, you can drink it if you want.” He put the glass on the counter next to Bucky, and sat down on the barstool closest to him. This was going to be a process. He yawned, and stretched a little bit. Maybe if he could get Bucky into the guest room and get him to sleep, he could go back to sleep too. But as much as Steve wanted to, he had other worries. If Tony would actually let Bucky stay longer than overnight, if the man was even vaguely okay. Not that he’d want to see him at the moment. Tony was probably angry at him. Maybe Steve would let him cool off, or - or he could send someone else. Yeah, maybe Bruce would be good at that. This was his problem though. He should deal with it.


End file.
